Birmingham architecture firm KPS Group will be the third tenant in the Pizitz Building after a $60 million renovation -- a redevelopment that the building's owner said will begin this year.

The project to rejuvenate the Pizitz Building has gone through fits and starts over the past decade. But with tenants now committed to take half of the building's office space and interest from others, the head of Bayer Properties vows this time it will happen.

"We will start construction on the project this year," said Jeffrey Bayer, principal at Bayer Properties. "You can say I said that."

Bayer's confidence is helped by architecture firm KPS Group's commitment to take around 15,000 square feet of office space in the building and move its 50 employees from downtown's Steiner Building.

KPS will join lead tenant Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz law firm, which plans to take 55,000 square feet and move its 140 employees from the Wachovia Tower. Bayer Properties also plans its own move from the Southside, taking 15,000 square feet and bringing its 50 employees.

Gray Plosser, president of KPS, said his firm is handling the renovation design work on the project and is eager to call the building home.

"It's an iconic building. It's a landmark," Plosser said. "It was the right move for us."

The seven-story, 211,000-square-foot Pizitz Building at 1821 Second Ave. North is slated to have offices on the upper six floors and 23,000 square feet of street-level retail and restaurants.

With 85,000 of the building's projected 169,000 square feet of office space already spoken for, that means nearly three floors of the six slated for offices are taken.

"We have several proposals out for more," said Dan Lovell, head Graham & Co.'s office leasing division, which is handling that chore for the Pizitz project. "Even though we're just getting started, there is a good amount of interest."

Developers said interest in the remaining office space is coming from tenants already in downtown Birmingham, some in the suburbs and at least one from out of state.

Office space in the building will be leased for $25.50 per square foot. Though that is at the high end of what is being asked for other downtown office space, Lovell said newly constructed office space today would likely cost about $30 per square foot or higher.

The building dates to 1923 and was the flagship for the Pizitz family department store chain before the downtown location closed in 1988. Bayer purchased the vacant building in 2000 for $1.6 million.

A revived Pizitz is considered important to downtown revitalization, especially as it relates to other projects such as the McWane Science Center directly across Second Avenue and the surrounding Theatre District.

"The Pizitz Building has certainly not added to the attraction and we know that," Bayer said. "But this is the missing component to complete the redevelopment of that area. This is the third leg of the stool."

David Silverstein, principal at Bayer Properties, said past attempts to revive the Pizitz suffered from timing and market conditions.

"When we bought the building, 19th Street was the edge of the city center revitalization," he said. "With One Federal Place and Innovation Depot and other projects in that area, 19th Street is no longer the edge, it's the center of the redevelopment activity."